This invention relates to fiber optic connectors, and particularly to fiber optic connectors for coupling a fiber optic cable to a photo-transducer device.
Connectors for coupling fiber optic cables to photo-transducer devices such as opto-electronic detectors and emitters must be capable of providing very accurate alignment between the optical fiber and the transducer. Providing alignment between an optical fiber of about 200 microns diameter and an area on the photo-transducer of about 1100 microns diameter is typical.
In some industrial applications, many connections between a conductor and a device are necessary. For example, in applications using solid state controllers, the connection between I/O circuit boards and external devices may involve hundreds or even thousands of connections. The circuit boards are typically held within a rack with a connector mounted to the rack which can be moved from a disconnected position to a connected position to complete a number of connections. While this type of an arrangement has been found to work well for electrical conductors, the dimensions of the rack cannot be economically controlled to yield the accuracy required by fiber optic conductors.
In spite of the accurate alignment required to make fiber optic connections, it is sometimes preferable to provide a readily separable fiber optic connection. Also, in some applications it is desirable to provide both optical and electrical connections in a single connector. Moreover, there may be many of each type of connection required by a given application. The requirements of such a connector are demanding because the electrical connections require a firm connection and the optical connections require extreme accuracy. For industrial applications, the connector must also be inexpensive to produce.
Optical cables are typically terminated with optical contacts. The manufacture of such optical contacts is a specialized art in itself. However, there are many different firms which provide optical contacts in the marketplace. Some prior art connectors require highly specialized contacts to achieve the necessary alignment accuracy and therefore cannot be adapted to use commercially available contacts. The difficulty and expense of procuring and using the specialized contacts can be a deterent to using fiber optics altogether.
Easy assembly and maintenance of the connector can also be important. In the prior art connectors using specialized contacts, particularly those where several contacts are included in a single connector, the cables can be difficult to install and/or replace. While in laboratory applications replacement of cables may not be a major consideration, in industrial environments fiber optic cables are somewhat susceptible to damage. Facile replacement of cables to connectors can therefore gain prominence to simplify system maintenance.